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danfromsyr
Samba Member
Joined: March 01, 2004
Posts: 15144
Location: Syracuse, NY
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 Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2021 10:25 am Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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rent a truck and tow it on your continued trip.
a $100 tow bar. plus some handyman wiring work (or just toss on the 4ways like we did) and you still have your bed&breakfast with you.
you will have to disconnect the driveaxles to not ruin the AT pump/governor
they tow surprisingly well. 
there's a thread in here with the bolt dimension requirements. and most FLAPS/farm & fleet/harbor frieghts have a 5000# towbar.
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| Abscate wrote: |
| These are the reasons we have words like “wanker” |
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SCM
Samba Member
Joined: January 26, 2011
Posts: 3119
Location: Bozeman MT
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| Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2021 10:45 am Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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| Zeitgeist 13 wrote: |
| Steve M. wrote: |
Aside from all the negativity, how was the trip up to this point? |
"Besides all that Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?" |
LOL, that was a good one!
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'91 Westfalia GL Automatic (GTA "Turbo" Rebuild w/Peloquin) and 2.3L GoWesty Engine |
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crobox
Samba Member
Joined: June 04, 2011
Posts: 56
Location: Taos, NM
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| Posted: Mon Aug 02, 2021 6:06 pm Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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Well it took two days and two round-trips between Taos and Breckenridge to get the family and the van back home, but we're all home now and we're safe, which is the important part.
Now it's time for a deep dive on transmissions.
I don't mean to turn this into a referendum on transmission options... because I need to do a LOT of reading now... but the options I'm deciding among are:
1) Rebuild the Auto I've already got. Cheapest option. Parts look like around $200, Ive got the time and the skills. This would also probably be the fastest way to get my van back on the road. But I really dislike automatics.
2) Swap to a VW 4-speed manual. I like this option but I have to find one first. Also it sounds like a Ring & Pinion swap would be in order, and maybe a 4th gear change as well. I'm going to start looking around for a manual (and the clutch pedal, clutch, etc. I would also have to change my CV axles. All of this adds up to significant more cost and time than sticking with the Auto.
3) Go with a reversed Subaru trans. This has many of the same disadvantages of option 2 (time to find the parts) and would be even more expensive than option 2, but I guess it yields a pretty bulletproof result.
Back to the drawing board.
And yes...
"Besides all that Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?"
That was flippin' hilarious.
It gave me and the family the only laugh that day.
Cheers
_________________
1971 Datsun 240Z - 1980 International Scout Cummins 4BT conversion - 1990 Westy EJ25 conversion - 2007 KTM 525 - 2007 KTM 950SE - 1990 International DT466 4900 HIAB Flatbed
www.christianristow.com |
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DanHoug
Samba Member
Joined: December 05, 2016
Posts: 4800
Location: Bemidji, MN
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| Posted: Mon Aug 02, 2021 6:14 pm Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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Rebuild your auto, get it back on the road with minimal cost. Then explore other options as time and money permit
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-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.
'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd
Past projects can be found at--
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fxr
Samba Member
Joined: December 07, 2014
Posts: 2325
Location: Bay area CA
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| Posted: Mon Aug 02, 2021 6:30 pm Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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| DanHoug wrote: |
| Rebuild your auto, get it back on the road with minimal cost. Then explore other options as time and money permit |
This, absolutely. Plus eventually you get to have a spare auto transmission for the next unlucky bugger to fall foul of 'shit happens'. 
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Jim Crowther
1984 1.9l EJ22 Westy Wolfsburg Edition
Vespa GTS 300 |
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kourt
Samba Member
Joined: August 13, 2013
Posts: 1948
Location: Austin, TX
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| Posted: Mon Aug 02, 2021 6:33 pm Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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Rebuild your automatic.
Start here. This is a guide for rebuilding automatics with Audi 5000 turbo internals, but you can use it to build a regular auto as well.
Your Vanagon automatic transmission is more robust, easier to rebuild, and has more available replacement parts than the Vanagon manual transmission.
kourt |
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crobox
Samba Member
Joined: June 04, 2011
Posts: 56
Location: Taos, NM
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| Posted: Mon Aug 02, 2021 6:58 pm Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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Thanks guys... I guess I'm gonna rebuild my automatic!
Plus, I did get a line on a free replacement auto... about 3.5 hours driving away... so that's my 'backup' trans right there, I guess.
Thanks for the input, guys.
_________________
1971 Datsun 240Z - 1980 International Scout Cummins 4BT conversion - 1990 Westy EJ25 conversion - 2007 KTM 525 - 2007 KTM 950SE - 1990 International DT466 4900 HIAB Flatbed
www.christianristow.com |
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skills@eurocarsplus
Samba Peckerhead
Joined: January 01, 2007
Posts: 16883
Location: sticksville, ct.
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| Posted: Mon Aug 02, 2021 7:08 pm Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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| crobox wrote: |
| But I really dislike automatics. |
the only automatic i have ever owned my entire life before i got my automatic vanagon has been my plow truck and a garden tractor. so i pretty much have driven a manual for my whole life.
that said...
i kinda dig it. put it in D and just hammer down. i bought a parts van to do a manual swap 'just in case' but the reality is i really kind of like the automatic.
i have a 2.5 hooked to mine and it its kind of trippy. it will bark 2nd gear if i hammer it. i don't have the time or space to dedicate to build transmissions so Matt Steedle did mine and i told him to build it to the 9's, which he did.
anyway, i wouldn't discount the automatic. i wasn't a real believer either but after spending some time with one i really like it.
| kourt wrote: |
Rebuild your automatic.
Your Vanagon automatic transmission is more robust, easier to rebuild, and has more available replacement parts than the Vanagon manual transmission.
kourt |
^^^^
i agree with *most* of this. the 'gotcha' as you've found is trying to locate one. they have become VERY scarce out in the wild as you've found. and parts are not super available either. the pandemic has made this that much harder as well.
and i will add...you will have a bunch of people say "go to the junkyard and get the audi blaa blaa blaa transmission....." when is the last time you've even seen one of those cars going down the road, let alone in a junk yard? and there is no guarantee IF you found one someone hasn't been in there before and swapped stuff out. some people fail to realize we're in 2021 and not 1994...stuff has dried up and been crushed.
anyway...the very few trans people i deal with have all spoken very highly of the automatic in terms of being a pretty tough trans when built right. so much so....many will tell you it's a stronger trans then the 4 speed.
the subaru automatic....
in stock form i've seen them go 300k untouched. i still have nightmares about Turd Tribblers rollout of the reversed 5 speed and the issues my customers had with them only to be met with "huh, lemme know how you fix it"
i WANT that trans to work, but in my mind....it's a case of "you first". i'm not going to be the test bed for this guy again. in a year or 2 i may be more open to that idea but as of now....nope.
it would be killer to have a 4 speed with a lock up converter....
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| gprudenciop wrote: |
my reason for switching to subaru is my german car was turning chinese so i said fuck it and went japanese....... |
| Jake Raby wrote: |
| Thanks for the correction. I used to be a nice guy, then I ruined it by exposing myself to the public. |
| Brian wrote: |
| Also the fact that people are agreeing with Skills, it's a turn of events for samba history |
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crobox
Samba Member
Joined: June 04, 2011
Posts: 56
Location: Taos, NM
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| Posted: Fri Aug 06, 2021 2:01 pm Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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OK I am getting into the Auto Trans, in order to rebuild it.
After a certain amount of consideration, I thought it probably made sense to start a new thread about that, rather than continue here.
The thread is called
Rebuilding Vanagon Automatic Transmission (Stuck in Breck, CO)
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=757866
Christian
_________________
1971 Datsun 240Z - 1980 International Scout Cummins 4BT conversion - 1990 Westy EJ25 conversion - 2007 KTM 525 - 2007 KTM 950SE - 1990 International DT466 4900 HIAB Flatbed
www.christianristow.com |
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crobox
Samba Member
Joined: June 04, 2011
Posts: 56
Location: Taos, NM
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| Posted: Tue Aug 31, 2021 8:02 am Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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This van is back on the road after rebuilding the transmission.
Feeling strong.
Thanks for all the help everybody!
Cheers
_________________
1971 Datsun 240Z - 1980 International Scout Cummins 4BT conversion - 1990 Westy EJ25 conversion - 2007 KTM 525 - 2007 KTM 950SE - 1990 International DT466 4900 HIAB Flatbed
www.christianristow.com |
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4Gears4Tires
Samba Member
Joined: October 08, 2018
Posts: 3054
Location: MD
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| Posted: Tue Aug 31, 2021 8:08 am Post subject: Re: SOS: stuck with family and dead auto trans near Breckenridge, CO |
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Congrats!
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'87 Syncro
Ferric Oxyhydroxide Superleggera Edition |
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